Kill Shelter - Asylum [US Version]

Despite being a relatively new project, Pete Burns’ Kill Shelter clearly has deep connections to the origins of Goth and darkwave. That would have been apparent to anyone who checked out the Edinburgh act’s debut LP Damage or last year’s collaborative release with Antipole which earned lots of spins around here in the Shed, but to anyone just getting on board new LP Asylum is even more overt in its aims. Like Damage, it features a rotating cast of vocalists, and the names tapped for Asylum certainly befit its knowing forays through some classic sounds. Asylum celebrates over 40 years of alternative and underground music and includes inspiring collaborations with Ronny Moorings (Clan of Xymox), Agent Side Grinder, Ash Code, Stefan Netschio (Beborn Beton), William Faith (The Bellwether Syndicate / Faith and the Muse), Valentina Veil (VV & the Void) and Antipole. Thankfully, Burns has not only written base tracks which match up very nicely with his guests, but has more than enough personality and flair to his own production style – a combo of classic goth licks and a machine-rock amplified approach to the hazier side of darkwave, Burns has provided his contemporaries with a sanctuary in which they can unreservedly spread their creative wings… as if they really needed it.

Themed around different interpretations of what asylum means, this release sees Burns take Kill Shelter into heavier electronic territory alongside tracks very core to the streamlined Goth rock instrumentals the band is known for. As with virtually all acts in the genre, traces of Bauhaus and The Mission will resound throughout Kill Shelter’s music, as insistent and relentless guitar patterns overlap with thrusts of electronic beats mixed to strike as hard as the most powerful drummer on the opening “Time Will Come.” “The Cage,” which closes the album out on this U.S. edition, along with the “Crossing Borders” interlude also serve to showcase Burns’ more abstract sensibilities, the two wrought with cavernous reverberations and shrilly distorted tones befitting a nocturnal sojourn. But it is with the guest performances that the frigid ambience of Asylum starts to burn brilliantly. Some might argue that working with so many artists with such well-defined styles runs the risk of obscuring one’s own voice; thankfully, Burns manages to avoid this as Kill Shelter’s sound bears its own definitively cold character, his compatriots merely adding a dash of flavour that enhances rather than obfuscates. In a sense, Asylum is a noble concept that lovingly celebrates the scene, with that combination of stone classic homage and contemporary credibility is the “have your cake and eat it, too” formula which runs through the record. Those little distinctions ultimately make up Asylum‘s charm. For instance, William Faith truly stands out as his emotive croon is in fine form on “Cover Me”, sounding a bit less snarling and more delicate than he generally has of late on Bellwether Syndicate records, bearing the weight of his decades of experience as one of the pioneering figures in Goth and death rock. But if Faith’s vocals hearken back to his early California goth classics, the track itself is more modern, heavy, and with an icy take on the genre only makes those era-spanning aesthetic choices all the more apparent.

The same can be said of “All of This” with its percolating synths and guitars provide the perfect backdrop for Ronny Moorings, the song sounding as good if not better than anything ever done by Clan of Xymox. Having already collaborated with Antipole, it’s no wonder that “Buried Deep” works as well as it does, Karl Morten-Dahl’s guitars and Burns’ gritty and disaffected baritone adding to the brooding, almost menacing atmosphere of the instrumental, while Beborn Beton’s Stefan Netschio harmonizes atop a dissonant and somewhat bluesy theme amid grimy bass and slapping beats on “In This Place.” “The Necklace” and “Feed the Fire” feature Agent Side Grinder and Ash Code, respectively, both filled with tension and urgency to give the relatively younger crop of artists room to shine, while VV & the Void’s Valentina Veil brings an almost childlike whimsy to “Queen of Hearts.” Are “Buried Deep” and “The Necklace” both heavily indebted to the Sisters? Sure, but there are massive differences in the particulars (the former sounding like a doom metal interpretation of “Marian”, the latter the original “Temple Of Love” 45 played at 33), and the different instrumentation and production styles in which those core riffs are sleeved should spark all manner of lateral thoughts and experiences in the mind of the seasoned goth connoisseur. Helpfully, these particulars serve as a sort of litmus test for the listener; if you’re the sort of person who’d be able to notice those subtleties, then you’re precisely the sort of person Asylum was made for.

Kill Shelter - Damage

Kill Shelter is the music project of Edinburgh based multi-instrumentalist, producer and remixer Pete Burns. Pete has gathered together a group of artists whose talents are already well known and appreciated in recent dark wave music. And by saying dark wave music I mean all of its forms. From the 80's cold wave influenced Antipole, the cold, post-punk, gothic Undertheskin to the synth influenced Hante and New Haunts. Pete Burns and Kill Shelter created a collection of songs that compile a really great dark, gothic album. As Pete Burns comments "...I wanted to create an album that was reflective and representative of the scene as is stands today from a global perspective..." and that is exactly what "Damage" is about.

There is really gothic spirit, touching the lines of The Sisters of Mercy and other gothic legends, in "In Decay feat. Antipole and Delphine Coma" and in "No Regrets ft Undertheskin". Music in all songs has been carefully composed by Pete Burns with strong basslines when it is necessary, powerful drum beats in some moments while the beat is going in low tempo in others, and fuzzing guitars and catchy synths in order to complete the dark atmosphere. A post-punk strength in "The Happening feat. Killjoi", in "Black String feat. Nate Jespersen" and in "Get Down ft The Shyness of Strangers". Then, it is the darkness in other songs, with their cold wave sounds, like the "As Trees Do Fall ft Bragolin", "Bodies ft Buzz Kull" and "Hollow ft. Pedro Code", while an emotional and melancholic atmosphere is being created with the melodies and the voices in "Kiss Me Goodbye ft Hante" and "Sever ft New Haunts".

Kill Shelter is clearly driven by good-old cold-wave music while characterized by an extremely dark sound creation. This artist can easily compete with the darkest groups from the 80s. The guitar playing is predominant while the low, vibrating bass lines are chilling. The songs are moving from fuzzy guitar parts to other typically, mewing passages while I also noticed a more psychedelic play as well. The different vocalists seem to have been chosen with care and all totally fit to the work of Pete Burns. Notice by the way the last song is an instrumental..

Pete Burns plays guitar, bass, e-bow and synths. He appears to be a talented guitarist, but also a genius bass player. The typical e-bow effect injects a great fuzzy touch and the electronic arrangements feel like the cherry on the cake. Kill Shelter as accomplished a masterpiece. The music is much more than simply a 80s emulation; it stands for the truly 80s spirit. If cold-wave has been always obscure, “Damage” must be an apotheosis in darkness. You’ll feel the bass lines vibrating in your throat while the guitar has something elevating.

This album is without a shadow of a doubt the most accomplished- and simply best work I’ve heard in the genre, but it also is one of the best releases in its genre for quite a long time. “Damage” stands for the birth of a new gothic icon!

Kill Shelter - In Decay / Bodies 7"

Welcome to Saturday mid-day GMT. In a change of mind about more 4AD singles (or similar) they’ll return next week, but in the meantime I’ve got a proper Goth banger from Kill Shelter (AKA Edinburgh based multi-talented Pete Burns). It was Burning World Records who released two of the darkest and most emotive tracks taken from the debut 2019 Kill Shelter album “Damage” as a limited edition double A-side single. The 7” single features two tracks, In Decay ft. Antipole & Delphine Coma, along with Bodies ft. Buzz Kull. Both tracks explore the theme of death from very different perspectives. In Decay explores the theme of loss and the inherent futility of the notion of forever. It’s an introspective story of personal grief and the impact of losing someone close to you set against a rich, dark guitar driven backdrop. Bodies in contrast, tells a macabre story which takes inspiration from a suspected murder case and a related Podcast by the Australian entitled “The Teacher’s Pet”. This track explores the darker side of human nature. The backstory revolves around a disturbing cold case from 37 years ago in Australia, where the sinister disappearance of a young mother is shrouded in a veil of sordid mystery and guilt.

Kill Shelter And Death Loves Veronica - The S3X Tape Sessions

With both artists already having demonstrated a propensity for collaboration in their respective bands, it was perhaps inevitable that Pete Burns and Veronica Stitch would work together. The merger of Kill Shelter’s gothic rock with the post-industrialized dark electro of Death Loves Veronica is already a provocative notion, but with The Sex Tape Sessions, the artists take things further to address a potent sociocultural issue – in an era of influencers and social media personalities, the very notion of identity and persona has become a commercial product unto itself, be it political, artistic, sexual, or even some twisted amalgam. Well, given the proliferation of pornography and sexual material on the web, that’s as good a backdrop as any for Kill Shelter and Death Loves Veronica, with the EP’s four main tracks each presented in extended and shorter standard mixes.
Of course, there isn’t much variation between the regular and the extended mixes beyond length, but so what? The EP is ultimately a DJ’s wet dream as each version brandishes pulsating EBM bass and thrusting dance beats, all supplanted by Stitch’s sultry vocals – breathily erotic in their delivering, but never belying a sense of menace, like a cobra poised to strike. While immediately palpable on the opening “Sex Tape,” it’s even more so on “The Sinner,” its lyrics rather disturbing in the implications of obsessive and even destructive desire; throw in some languid guitar passages for melodic texture, and you get a track that is eerily enticing. The same can be said for “Death Kiss,” as the guitars howl with harmonics and feedback amid a scorching bed of EBM, Stitch’s repetitions of “Suicide Kiss” almost becoming too much to bear. “Resist” is also notable for the production flourishes, a seething synth sweeping across the speakers to match the breathy whisper of the vocals, a glassy guitar adding quite nicely to the chorus.
Released on multiple formats and platforms, Kill Shelter and Death Loves Veronica have even encouraged those who purchase the EP to share and redistribute freely, using the very medium to enhance the underlying metacommentary of inauthenticity and commoditization. Some may even choose to disregard its cerebral concept and simply enjoy the EP as a darkly lascivious helping of throbbing EBM, which would also play into its rather heady themes. Musically, it’s no gamechanger, but it will provide enough of a good time on the dance floor if nothing else.

Kill Shelter And Antipole - A Haunted Place [Bonus Tracks]

Antipole is the moniker of guitarist Karl Morten Dahl based in Trondheim, Norway. His music is instantly recognizable by guitar-driven, evocative and hypnotic post-punk/new wave mixed with synthesizers and drum machines. Kill Shelter is alternative artist, producer and remixer Pete Burns. His work blends elements of Darkwave, Post-Punk and contemporary Electronica. Described as dark euphoric melancholy, A Haunted Place is a highly emotive album that deals with personal themes of loss, addiction, isolation and remorse brought together with angst-ridden highs and introspective lows.